Gladiator of Rome (#1 in Gladiator Series)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Artorius's words echoed in Krista's mind. Never let your guard down. It was something Lazarus always told her as well but Krista had never let her guard down. Not once in all of her years as a slave and a warrior. Who did Artorius presume he was to tell her that? Did he think her simple minded?
Even now as she vented her anger out on the training post for the second day in a row Krista couldn't help but yearn for the games. She had been caged up in Ludus Magnus for nearly four days with nothing but wooden weapons at her disposal. It looked like a haven at Ludus Magnus with its expensive training equipment and rich food but the high walls and centurions on duty reminded her that it was nothing less than a prison.
At least under Commander Niclaus's rule they had been allowed to train on each other. A trainer was always close by to break up any fight that grew too intense but the threat was as real as the steel in their hands had been but here they were given shields, spears and swords made from wood or nothing at all.

The frustration was too much as Krista slammed another low swing into the post, her grunts mixing in the air with nearly a hundred other gladiators around her. Sweat beaded on her skin as stepped back and watched the wooden trunk wobble slightly from the force of her blow. Perhaps she had been imagining Artorius's head where the post had been she wondered, but whatever she had been thinking of, it soon dispersed from her mind when she felt the air shift.

Lifting her head curiously, Krista watched as every gladiator in the courtyard stopped what they were doing and turned to look towards the arches on their left which separated the wide stone walkway from the training arena. Following their gaze Krista saw the Senator; an older yet youthful looking man with dark hair, a swollen abdomen which indicated he did not want for anything, and a gold jewellery adorning his wrists and neck. However Krista and everyone else's attention was drawn to the pair he led down the corridor behind him.  From the rich silks that draped over their shoulders and the laurel wreaths resting atop their heads like a crown Krista did not need to think long to guess that this man and woman were the most important people in the entire Roman Empire. The stench of wealth and lineage seemed to come off them in waves until it hit them all in the face causing their noses to crinkle in disgust but they kept their tongues either out of fear or allegiance and bowed their heads as they passed for this was the man that had the power to grant them either life or death in the arena. Titus Flavius Vespasian.

A thick mass of curly black hair rested on his head beneath the golden laurel which sharply contrasted with the pure white silks that hung over his arm and the gold sash across his chest. But whilst he commanded everyone's attention Krista was drawn to the woman beside him. From so far away, she could not see the intricate details of their faces but Krista could tell she was beautiful. Thick strands of blonde hair fell in perfect ringlets to the base of her spine, held in place by her gold laurel wreath and a matching brooch. Her skin was fair and underneath her lilac silk she had an envious figure which had been emphasised with the use of a golden rope tied tautly around her small waist. She was walking beside the emperor who was speaking to the senator but she did not seem to be listening as her eyes seemed glued to the gladiators instead. Krista got the eerie sense that she was making mental notes as she passed them, every so often hidden by the pillars of the arcade until they reached the end and disappeared inside a doorway out of view completely. 

Every gladiator looked at each other, a few sharing their comments with another, before they were instructed to get back to training. As Krista turned back towards the post however she saw Artorius watching her from across the way. The hair on her arms stood on end when she saw the way he was looking at her before someone moved the distance behind him and she automatically turned towards the movement. That was when she saw that it was Rheia, the entire one hundred and twenty pounds of her Middle Eastern figure stepping out from the baths half nude when she caught Krista watching her.  
The last time Krista had seen Rheia she had won their training match but Rheia did not strike Krista as someone to let such a defeat go unavenged and so Krista had slept with one eye open ever since but nothing had happened. She could just be waiting for their time in the arena, like any gladiator would, but Rheia wasn't like the others. Her light brown skin was glistening from the water that still dripped off her body as she rested against the side of a pillar seductively, letting one leg rub up against the other. Krista narrowed her eyes as Rheia gave her a small smirk before she turned her gaze towards something else. As Krista followed where she was looking she saw that it wasn't something but rather someone; Artorius.